Aguirre Loses Ground

I wasn't able to attend the traditional 2nd May ceremony hosted by Esperanza Aguirre in Madrid this year. A prior commitment to walk another of the remoter areas of Asturias meant that there were more cocktails and canapés for the rest. That and the fact that my invitation seemed to have got lost in the post....yet again! Anyway, my sources tell me that Napoleon no longer poses a significant threat to the city. So on my return it was encouraging to read that the latest opinion poll for the Madrid region shows the Lideresa/Condesa/Presidenta with some 5 points less public support than she achieved back in 2007. There is, of course, another side to the story; she's still on slightly more than 50% - enough to return most of those in the party ranks who have not yet been formally charged with corruption (and probably some that have).

It's still an interesting result, because it's not a consequence of effective opposition and it takes place in a context where the PP nationally seems to be rising in the polls. The PSOE in Madrid seems at times to have adopted invisibility as the best form of opposition. As Aguirre's administration shares out what were formerly public services between friends and family, the main party of opposition has little to say on the issue. Now they are boycotting official events on the grounds that they have been ignored, but such a softly, softly approach has done nothing to prevent Espe from brushing them aside. One consequence of this, together with the crisis eroding support for the PSOE at national level, is that Izquierda Unida seem to be attracting greater support in the capital and surrounding region. We can only hope it's the start of a trend, although the recent strikes at Telemadrid revealed yet again the odd and depressing statistics of how many thousands of viewers prefer to watch the blank screen until someone in authority comes along and tells them they're allowed to turn it off.